Texas
updated
5:05 p.m.
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Today a 4 (white) man, 2 (white) woman jury found ex-Houston PD officer Andrew Blomberg not guilty of “official” oppression – otherwise known as criminal assault. Who is Andrew Blomberg? He is one of four ex-Houston PD officers who were caught on a security brutalizing a 15 year old African-American boy who was fleeing the scene of a burglary that he had just committed. The video shows the boy...
Half Empty - 5:04 p.m.
From my Goodreads review: @font-face { font-family: "Times New Roman"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }table.MsoNormalTable { font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } In “Passage of Power,” the fourth volume of his ever-expanding, five-volume-to-b...
SocraticGadfly - 1:10 p.m. - 6 clicks 
Judge allows hearing on Villalobos removal from office. Senior Judge J. Manuel Bañales will hold an evidentiary hearing Friday to determine if the petition in the 444th state District Court for the removal of Cameron County District Attorney Armando R. Villalobos should proceed. Harlingen attorney Juan Angel Guerra filed the petition on behalf of Trinidad Salinas. Bañales, of Corpus Christi an...
South Texas Chisme - 12:12 p.m. - 8 clicks
A deadline is fast approaching for public comments on the proposed Trinity Parkway in Dallas. This "parkway" that Dallas city government leaders and regional transportation entities want to build would be a $1.8 billion, six-lane, limited-access toll road in between the levees of the Trinity River floodway. Yes, that's right, they want to build a road down the length of a space that is des...
DailyKos (Texas) - 11:32 a.m. - 10 clicks
A new e-book published by a law journal argues that Texas probably executed an innocent man in 1989, and predictably the potential cause was reliance on a single, shaky eyewitness to obtain a conviction after police allegedly picked up the wrong "Carlos." According to the Houston Chronicle : Accounts of the crime, the investigation and DeLuna's prosecution were presented in a 400-page article...
Grits for Breakfast - 6:30 a.m. - 8 clicks
I’m not talking total number, I’m talking what share of the vote will be cast early. The professionals think it will be a lot. “The early vote is more important this time than perhaps in any cycle in my lifetime in Texas,” said Republican consultant Matt Mackowiak, 32. Upping its importance this time is what [...]...
Off the Kuff - 4:44 a.m. - 12 clicks
I mentioned some of the candidates that have been endorsed by the Texas Parent PAC in this post, but since then they have released their full slate of endorsees. Texas Senate S.D. 9: Rep. Todd Smith, R-Euless www.toddsmithfortexas.com S.D. 11: Dave Norman, R-Seabrook www.davenormanforsenate.com S.D. 25: Sen. Jeff Wentworth, R-San Antonio www.senatorjeffwentworth.com Texas House of Representativ...
Off the Kuff - 3:05 a.m. - 12 clicks
We’re lousy at sex education. In the mid-1990s, California embraced sex education that teaches students the importance of waiting until they’re older to have sex, but also the value of using protection if they don’t wait. Compare this with classrooms in Texas, where messages around contraception — if they’re delivered at all — have sometimes [...]...
Off the Kuff - 2:54 a.m. - 12 clicks
I'm late to the game on this one so I'll leave the description of this latest report (pdf) by Michele Deitch and her LBJ School collaborators to Solitary Watch, which discusses the report at some length: A new report produced by researchers at the University of Texas’s Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs describes conditions faced by children who are “certified” for transfer to ad...
Grits for Breakfast - Tue 4:48 p.m. - 12 clicks
I received this exclusive video, courtesy of Minnesota public radio’s Michael Olson, of Rick Perry’s official audition tape for the role of Magda in the long-awaited sequel of There’s Something About Mary. In the video, Perry endorses Pete Hegseth in the Minnesota GOP Senate primary calling the tea party candidate “exactly the kind of patriot [...]...
In the Pink Texas - Tue 2:31 p.m. - 11 clicks
If you, like Grits, couldn't make it to the Texas Public Policy Foundation 's policy briefing last week on "Right-Sizing Texas Corrections," you'll be glad to learn they've posted an audio file of the event online. Go here to listen . ...
Grits for Breakfast - Tue 12:51 p.m. - 13 clicks
Originally published at Fair and Unbalanced "No one can ever say again with a straight face that America doesn't execute innocent men. No one." -- Andrew Rosenthal, The Atlantic Carlos DeLuna was executed in 1989 for the 1983 stabbing death of a gas station clerk in Corpus Christi, Texas. The Columbia University Human Rights Review has just published its Spring 2012 issue dev...
DailyKos (Texas) - Tue 11:43 a.m. - 12 clicks
From today's Houston Chronicle , Texas Senior Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison endorses Mitt Romney. Not much of a surprise, I know, but it's always worth seeing how these endorsements are phrased. The full endorsement is provided below, annotated with your diarist's toned-down reactions. When it comes to dividing Americans on the basis of their gender, I know a little something about the subj...
DailyKos (Texas) - Tue 10:06 a.m. - 13 clicks
I don't trust the TCEQ . They're crony capitialists, aka republicans, all the way. A letter issued Monday by a district judge could push proponents of the $3 billion Las Brisas Energy Center back to the drawing board. The letter, issued by 345th District Court Judge Stephen Yelenosky of Travis County, details his intent to send back a state-issued air quality permit to the Texas Commission on E...
South Texas Chisme - Tue 6:32 a.m. - 13 clicks
Mike Ward at the Austin Statesman on Sunday offered a worm's-eye view of violence at youth prisons from the perspective of juvenile correctional officers (JCOs), many of whom, as anyone who reads Grits comments knows, blame increased violence on the head of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, Cherie Townsend and lenient security policies on TYC campuses (" Workers trace youth lockup's problems ...
Grits for Breakfast - Tue 6:05 a.m. - 11 clicks
At last week’s Council hearing on the proposed expansion of Hobby Airport, Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly made the statement that if the proposal were to be accepted, Southwest would pay for the $100 million project. The Chron looks at what this means. Because the Houston Airport System is an enterprise fund separate from the [...]...
Off the Kuff - Tue 5:48 a.m. - 11 clicks
The Statesman raises a great question about the settlement deal between Amazon and the state of Texas that will get the online retailer to start collecting sales taxes in Texas while forgiving back taxes the state says it owes. But is it legal? Austin lawyer Buck Wood, a tax attorney and a former deputy comptroller [...]...
Off the Kuff - Tue 5:48 a.m. - 13 clicks
I really want to believe that there’s an uprising in the works and that the Lege could be a very different place for the better next year, but I’m reserving judgment on that for now. Deep cuts in school funding approved by the Texas Legislature last summer could energize angry parents in a way similar [...]...
Off the Kuff - Tue 5:48 a.m. - 10 clicks
About time. More than 3½ years after Hurricane Ike, a high-ranking federal housing official and Mayor Annise Parker announced Wednesday that $151 million in federal disaster relief money is on the way to four areas of Houston to rebuild or repair homes and apartments. “It’s about time we get this taken care of,” Parker said. [...]...
Off the Kuff - Tue 5:48 a.m. - 12 clicks
Just don't call it Sweden if it is. Americans, by a good margin, say they want the same relatively low level of economic inequality as Sweden has today. But, to @font-face { font-family: "Times New Roman"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }table.MsoNormalTable { font-size: 10pt; fo...
SocraticGadfly - Mon 3:29 p.m. - 11 clicks
Check out an extended series from the New Orleans Times-Picayune titled, " Louisiana Incarcerated: How we built the nation's prison capital ," which has its own web portal. A few years ago Texas competed with Louisiana for the highest incarceration rate, but ours has leveled off - even slightly declined - while theirs continues to climb. Here's a graphic from the series suggesting four reasons w...
Grits for Breakfast - Mon 1:08 p.m. - 14 clicks
The Texas Progressive Alliance reminds everyone that early voting has begun as it brings you this week's blog roundup. Off the Kuff finished his interview tour of Texas with a conversation with Domingo Garcia in CD33. BossKitty at TruthHugger will not weigh in, whether or not the truth was actually served in court, when a black woman fired a warning shot into a wall. ...
Brains and Eggs - Mon 11:44 a.m. - 13 clicks
Complications with Villalobos case . The U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Texas cannot take part in the federal case against Cameron County District Attorney Armando Villalobos — with one exception, public records state. This, following United States Associate Deputy Attorney General David Margolis’ approval of an office-wide recusal of the southern district from the Villalobos...
South Texas Chisme - Mon 9:29 a.m. - 15 clicks
The Texas Progressive Alliance reminds everyone that early voting has begun as it brings you this week's blog roundup. Off the Kuff finished his interview tour of Texas with a conversation with Domingo Garcia in CD33. BossKitty at TruthHugger will not weigh in, whether or not the truth was actually served in court, when a black lady fired a warning shot into a wall. Firing a gun in i...
South Texas Chisme - Mon 8:12 a.m. - 15 clicks
Some interesting tidbits in here. Despite the minority makeup of a newly drawn congressional district, a San Antonio Latina candidate faces a steep uphill climb against a white Austin liberal with a long tenure in the nation’s capital. Sylvia Romo, the Bexar County tax assessor-collector, and Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, are battling with political newcomer [...]...
Off the Kuff - Mon 3:04 a.m. - 24 clicks
Ahh, May. Besides spring heading toward summer, or, in much of Texas, already entering it, it reminds me of one of the more objectionable facets of television: May is one of the four "sweeps" months, in which Nielsen ratings get extra advertising scrutiny. Could you imagine what newspapers would be like with that? In New York, the Post would probably borrow from its Murdoch cousins across the p...
SocraticGadfly - Mon 2:05 a.m. - 11 clicks
Well I’ll be the son of a motherless goat. It seems the voters in Fort Bend ISD, or at least a majority of 5.15% of them anyway, want a change on their Board of Trustees. We had three positions that were being sought by eight candidates, two of them were incumbents. Results just in, both incumbents were given the boot by voters. Cynthia Lenton-Gary, incumbent for Position 7 who was appointed to...
Half Empty - Sun 2:23 p.m. - 12 clicks
The Texas Progressive Alliance thinks Mrs. Sarkozy would have been the better candidate than her husband as it brings you this week’s roundup. Three more Congressional candidate interviews from Off the Kuff: State Rep. Joaquin Castro, the heir apparent in … Continue reading → ...
McBlogger - Sun 7:45 a.m. - 21 clicks
Saw an article that Sid Miller, author of Big Government Intrusive Sonogram Bill in Texas, also worked to transfer money away from Planned Parentthood. Why? For Republican politicians in Texas, like Rep. Sid Miller, opposition to the reproductive health organization is a badge of honor. "In the last budget, I transferred $21 million away from Planned Parenthood," says...
Somervell County Salon - Sun 7:44 a.m. - 26 clicks
Having just reported on the vehicle registration problems at the Harris County Tax Assessor’s office, the Chron now writes about the GOP primary for that office. A Houston Chronicle story Friday reported Sumners’ staff is working overtime to process a backlog of auto registrations so motorists are not ticketed for driving with expired decals. [Challenger [...]...
Off the Kuff - Sun 3:43 a.m. - 23 clicks
Election Results for Glen Rose City Council (3 positions): Johnny Martin - 151 Sandra Ramsay - 147 Chris Bryant - 126 Jimmy Thompson - 116 Sue Oldenberg - 87 Pam Miller - 78 Laverne West - 46 Young Leutwyler - 44 Glen Rose ISD (2 positions): Kevin Taylor - 365 Tom Lounsberry - 343 Chip Harrison - 110 ...
Somervell County Salon - Sat 9:24 p.m. - 24 clicks
After drawing a map of North Carolina that contained 12 competitive districts, I wanted to see what could be done in other states. Due mainly to south Texas, this map isn't quite as clean as my NC map, but I think it gets the job done. See below. ...
DailyKos (Texas) - Sat 12:28 p.m. - 12 clicks
Song #69 on the Popdose Top 100 Covers list is “Get it On (Bang a Gong)”, originally by T.Rex and covered by Power Station. Here’s the original: That’s a song you’re probably quite familiar with if you’ve been anywhere near a classic rock station in the last 25 years or so. I have no idea what he’s [...]...
Off the Kuff - Sat 12:04 p.m. - 16 clicks
As the May 29 Primary Election looms, 2010 U.S. Congressional candidate John Lingenfelder and County Chair incumbent Shawn Stevens are seeking the office of Democratic Party of Collin County Chair. In this presidential election year, the Democratic Party's County Chair contest is about the only county wide primary contest that anyone is talking about in Collin Co. Other than the Collin Co...
Democratic Blog of Collin County - Sat 10:10 a.m. - 14 clicks
Could/should Texas be spending more federal grant dollars to support indigent defense? And should the Governor's Criminal Justice Division continue to forbid using Texas' deepest well of federal criminal-justice grant funds for that purpose? A press release Grits received via email from the Constitution Project argues that a greater proportion of federal grant money aimed at criminal justice shou...
Grits for Breakfast - Sat 10:09 a.m. - 12 clicks
As primary season heats up, Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley has been repeatedly forced on the campaign trail to defend his role opposing DNA evidence and the release of exculpatory evidence under open records during habeas proceeding challenging Michael Morton's false conviction. But Bradley's statements have strayed so far from the facts, says Morton's attorney John Raley, that t...
Grits for Breakfast - Sat 5:03 a.m. - 17 clicks
With the 2012 presidential election now set to pair the incumbent, Barack Obama, aka Dear Leader for Obamiacs, vs. Mitt Romney, aka Etch-a-Sketch, even in the political world, for anybody who knows politics, it led me to wonder what some of the worst presidential campaigns in American history have been. I’m going to break this into a two-parter, and start from 1904, with Teddy Roosevelt be...
SocraticGadfly - Sat 3:08 a.m. - 15 clicks
Texas Monthly proposes a way to deal with those bothersome invasive species. Keep your invasive species sweet; you may have to eat them. Late last week StateImpact Texasput together a list of the “Top Ten Invasive Species in Texas.” But what’s the best way to trim back their numbers? Helping eliminate invasives by eating them is an idea [...]...
Off the Kuff - Sat 3:07 a.m. - 17 clicks
I know, I’m as shocked as you are. An analysis of Federal Election Commission data by the Houston Chronicle found that more than three-fourths of Democratic political money raised in Texas has left the state. Of the $21 million Texas Democrats have given to candidates running for federal office, Super PACs and party political committees [...]...
Off the Kuff - Sat 3:07 a.m. - 17 clicks
State Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, on Friday asked the Texas Secretary of State to make clear that the voter photo ID requirement will not be in effect for the May 29 primary. Legislation passed in 2011 ( SB 14 ) requires that voters present one of a select group of government issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, passport or military ID, before casting a ballot. The U.S. Departmen...
Democratic Blog of Collin County - Fri 9:08 p.m. - 20 clicks
I had an interesting experience a few weeks ago. I was driving from Houston to Dallas to visit my boyfriend when I saw one of the ugliest displays of racism I'd ever personally seen. I know what you're thinking. "Racism in rural East Texas? You don't say! " Indeed, racists are not in short supply down here. But if you think this is going to be a Texas-hating diary, think again. Foll...
DailyKos (Texas) - Fri 7:25 p.m. - 12 clicks
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SocraticGadfly - Fri 3:28 p.m. - 16 clicks
In Fact Daily is running a story about the effort to green the F1 track coming to Austin mixed in with the city election on Saturday. The bullshit kicked off when Mayoral Candidate Brigid Shea accused Mayor Leffingwell of failing … Continue reading → ...
McBlogger - Fri 1:45 p.m. - 46 clicks
And, no, it's not James Lovell or Tom Hanks speaking that to a real or fictitious NASA. Rather, it's probably an exec at the Houston Chronicle speaking that to a corporate lawyer. Because, add in a mix of a staff writer who was doing moonlighting as a stripper — and blogging about it, her getting "outed" by Houston's alt-weekly, her getting fired by the Chron, and her now getting represented...
SocraticGadfly - Fri 12:49 p.m. - 19 clicks
According to the Back Gate , a prison-guard run website, Michelle Lyons, the long-time chief flak at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice's public relations department, has "resigned after enduring retaliation and harassment by agency officials for several months." (She's been unenviably replaced, says TDCJ's website , by understudy Jason Clark.) The Back Gate reported that: Michelle emai...
Grits for Breakfast - Fri 10:33 a.m. - 17 clicks
Contrary to myth, Christianity's concept of marriage has not been set in stone since the days of Christ, but has constantly evolved as a concept and ritual. Prof. John Boswell, the late Chairman of Yale University’s history department, discovered that in addition to heterosexual marriage ceremonies in ancient Christian church liturgical documents, there were also ceremonies called the "...
Democratic Blog of Collin County - Fri 8:53 a.m. - 21 clicks
Aggressively insisting on 'assisting' voters stinks . One in five people who cast early ballots in Hidalgo’s City Council election brought someone else into the voting booth for help, Hidalgo County Elections Administrator Yvonne Ramon said Thursday. While Texas law allows voters to seek assistance in special circumstances, unusually high assistance rates often indicate political machines — and,...
South Texas Chisme - Fri 8:07 a.m. - 24 clicks
In addition to the tongue lashing they got from the DC Court in the voter ID preclearance trial, the Greg Abbott gang took fire from judges in two other cases recently. Trail Blazers has the highlights. First, some incredulity from the Court of Criminal Appeals: Last Wednesday, Solicitor General Jonathan Mitchell tried to convince the [...]...
Off the Kuff - Fri 3:25 a.m. - 17 clicks
There are four LGBT candidates running for the Lege this year. Since 2003, when Austin Democrat Glen Maxey left the Texas House, no out LGBT person has served in the Texas Legislature. The Lone Star State is now one of only 18 states that lacks an openly LGBT state legislator, according to the Gay and [...]...
Off the Kuff - Fri 3:25 a.m. - 15 clicks
This New York Times column is the second time I've read the eminent climate scientist claim that the 2011 Texas drought was due to global warming/climate change. And, he's wrong. Now, global warming and climate, in all likelihood, exacerbated a drought that was going to happen anyway. And, yes, this was the worst one-year drought in state history. But, that drought was going to happen a...
SocraticGadfly - Thu 7:11 p.m. - 16 clicks
My boss said this picture wasn't good as lead art on the front page because there's no people visible. Tosh. I had an idea for a Page 1 design to get people above the fold but still use this as dominant art. But, I wasn't asked, and to the degree I tried to "sell" something, I was ignored. That's basically yet another reason why, within this job, a "newspaper romantic" wh...
SocraticGadfly - Thu 6:31 p.m. - 12 clicks
It's the nature of snitching in the criminal justice system: Big fish get off, little fish get eaten. From the Houston Chronicle, see: " Drug crime sends first-time offender grandmom to prison for life: Houstonian, who has no secrets to trade, is doing more time than drug lords ." ...
Grits for Breakfast - Thu 4:09 p.m. - 12 clicks
WTF ? Family and friends of Ted "Teddy" Molina, a former Flour Bluff High School student who committed suicide in April, said police have asked them to obtain a permit for future protests even though their demonstrations began weeks ago. "We've kind of given them a little leeway with that," said Capt. Jerry Vesely, who oversees permits with the Corpus Christi Police Department. City ordinance ...
South Texas Chisme - Thu 7:11 a.m. - 15 clicks
You may remember the former batsht crazy Willacy County DA. I liked to call him DA Hissy fit . He's back in the news . A petition to remove Cameron County District Attorney Armando R. Villalobos from office was filed Wednesday in the state 444th District Court. Harlingen attorney Juan Angel Guerra, former district attorney in Willacy County and a candidate for congressional District 34, filed ...
South Texas Chisme - Thu 7:11 a.m. - 16 clicks
The Texas Progressive Alliance thinks Mrs. Sarkozy would have been the better candidate than her husband as it brings you this week’s roundup. Three more Congressional candidate interviews from Off the Kuff: State Rep. Joaquin Castro, the heir apparent in CD20; Bexar County Tax Assessor Sylvia Romo in CD35; and former Bastrop County Judge Ronnie [...]...
Off the Kuff - Thu 3:53 a.m. - 16 clicks
Turns out Houston isn’t the only city squabbling with United Airlines about airport expansions. There’s a similar fight going on in Chicago. Mayor Rahm Emanuel has gotten tough with the teachers union and muscled the City Council. But will he mess with somebody his own size? Mr. Emanuel is at odds with airline boss Jeff [...]...
Off the Kuff - Thu 3:53 a.m. - 18 clicks
After I posted my overview of 30 Day campaign finance reports for other state races, I got an email from Cliff Walker, the Executive Director of the Texas House Democratic Campaign Committee, with a more accurate list of races and candidates than I had. Based on that, here’s what my overview should have looked like: [...]...
Off the Kuff - May 9 - 13 clicks
http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/05/07/3943109/arlington-fa BY SUSAN SCHROCK sschrock@star-telegram.com ARLINGTON -- Two natural gas well trade organizations filed suit Monday in a District Court in Tarrant County to prevent Arlington from implementing what they deem an unnecessary and discriminatory new tax on gas wells. Last month, the City Council unanimously...
About Air and Water - May 9 - 17 clicks
Remember those "unprecedented" wildfires last year in Texas and across the rest of the Southwestern United States? If you don't let me remind you, or rather watch this video: Well either global warming is real or God really has it in for Texas, big time. Again. Because this year an "unusually" (when will reporters stop using that adverb to describe the "new no...
DailyKos (Texas) - May 9 - 13 clicks
What reasonable person wouldn't ? Amid harsh words this week from Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott's office and a panel of federal judges, the chances dimmed of implementing the new voter identification law in time for November's elections. In a statement Tuesday, Abbott's office offered an emphatic denial of a charge by a federal court in Washington that criticized Texas for drawing out the l...
South Texas Chisme - May 9 - 20 clicks
The way this is going, we may have to start importing judges from other states. Former U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay’s appeal has taken an unexpected turn as three Republican justices removed themselves from his money laundering case in just a matter of days. That leaves the fate of DeLay, a high-profile Republican who [...]...
Off the Kuff - May 9 - 17 clicks
According to a legal opinion provided by the City Attorney’s office, Houston must provide “reasonable accommodation” to Southwest Airlines for its proposal to offer international flights at Hobby Airport. In a memo accompanying the legal opinion, City Attorney David Feldman wrote that “consideration of such economic issues for the community cannot be controlling; the City’s [...]...
Off the Kuff - May 9 - 15 clicks
To complete my tour of the 30 day finance reports, here are the 30 day finance reports from Democratic legislative primaries around the state. Dist Candidate Raised Spent Loans Cash ========================================================== 035 Gus Ruiz 11,047 27,858 25,000 2,067 035 Joseph Campos 18,620 4,338 0 0 035 Oscar Longoria 34,421 47,823 61,000 42,704 040 TC Betancourt [...]...
Off the Kuff - May 9 - 15 clicks
The Governor's "fixer," Jay Kimbrough, is going to resolve whatever's wrong with the Texas Juvenile Justice Department or else whip out his knife and cut anybody who gets in his way. At least part of me hopes so. If he brandishes it just once more at another government official, Kimbrough's would be the most famous Texan knife since Jim Bowie's! Okay, perhaps it won't come to that, but it's nearly...
Grits for Breakfast - May 9 - 14 clicks
Or as I like to say; why things shape up the way they do in the present. Amendent One passed - I am very sad for North Carolina. Living in Texas I have great sympathy for y'all. Years ago, Houston City Council voted in some domestic partner benefits. The Religious Right (I want to say Reich, but it might be in bad taste) forced it onto the ballot and it happened to be during a runnoff for some s...
DailyKos (Texas) - May 9 - 12 clicks
An audit found poor documentation for much of the construction and other contract spending by the Texas Youth Commission, now the Juvenile Justice Department, reported the Austin Statesman's Mike Ward on Saturday . The story opened: During the past five years, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department relied heavily on change orders to pay for construction work that was not within the scope of the...
Grits for Breakfast - May 8 - 5 clicks
The Victoria Advocate yesterday published an informative item (" Victoria County Jail takes steps to stop suicides by inmates ," May 7) on Texas jail suicides which opened: At a time when suicides are the leading cause of death in county jails, Texas jails are following tougher standards to bring down those numbers. Authorities agree the application of the state's suicide prevention program at...
Grits for Breakfast - May 8 - 4 clicks
'Democrat' is a noun, you morons. Why didn't you just drop the word 'choice' in your endorsement headline? Did you want to emphasize your bias that the Democrats had bad choices and this guy was the best of a bad lot? ' Caller-Times Editorial Board: Valencia is best Democrat choice for Nueces sheriff ' Aholes! ...
South Texas Chisme - May 8 - 6 clicks
This is a great opinion piece - and warning - from Fort Bend Democratic chair Stephen Brown. The short version - Democrats, do not vote for Kesha Rogers in the Democratic Primary for TX-22! Chairman Brown lays out the case against Kesha. I tried to get the word out in 2010 when Kesha pulled this same stunt - ran in the Democratic Primary for TX-22 and won. Many Obama supporters voted for Kesha...
Musings - May 8 - 7 clicks
The real Libertarian, the former New Mexico governor not Ron Paul, has gotten the Libertarian Party presidential nod. First, per a link inside this Daily Beast overview of what he could do in the race, I love how the WSJ disses his "outside the mainstream" views on gay marriage and legal marijuana, when they're both majoritarian (were I not voting Green, he'd likely be ahead of Dear Leader as...
SocraticGadfly - May 8 - 6 clicks
Up in the gas patch, Sharon Wilson has been tangling with a company called Range Resources that’s really pulling out the stops to try to shut her up. It’s not working, but it’s providing as great deal of amusement to … Continue reading → ...
McBlogger - May 7 - 2 clicks
This is part of a series of interviews of those candidates who are running for elected office in Collin County, Texas. The information in this article is based on materials and interviews provided by the candidate. If you would like to be interviewed by the Collin County Observer, please email your request to bill@baumbach.org. Barnett Walker, 50, is a candidate for the bench of Collin County Cou...
The Collin County Observer - May 7 - 2 clicks
Remember Rocky and Bullwinkle? Moose and squirrel? Well I sent this message to The Rachel Maddow Show contact address tonight. I have finally had enough. Message follows: "Guys, I have been wincing every time this word has been used. It was used again tonight by Chris Hayes. The word is 'floundering.' Floundering means catching flounders. Fish. Fish that are flounders. The correct word is fo...
Half Empty - May 7 - 3 clicks
This is uproarious. Two Republicans in the state Senate jockeying for the day a when Texas needs a new lieutenant governor are hurling rotten tomatoes at each other . The Quorum Report scored a scoop highlighting the animosity between Republican Sens. John Carona, of Dallas, and Dan Patrick, of Houston — complete with Patrick accusing Carona of lying about Patrick’s marriage, and Carona n...
Brains and Eggs - May 7 - 3 clicks
Or he's playing some kind of long con game that nobody else can decipher. The U.S. Department of Justice has asked a panel of federal judges to postpone the trial in Texas' Voter ID case because of complaints that state Attorney General Greg Abbott continues to stall requests for information. The inability to get documents and Abbott's fight to keep Republican legislators from having to test...
Brains and Eggs - May 7 - 3 clicks
Here in Fort Bend County, Texas it is always fun around primary time watching the Republican candidates try and scratch each other’s eyes out. It’s particularly fun when it involves the current tiff between the ultra-right TEA Party leaning ones and the “mainstream Republicans” as they are now being called. When a blow-up occurs between these two factions, it is popcorn time for we Democrats. ...
Half Empty - May 7
President Barack Obama greets supporters in El Paso, TX, after immigration address on May 10, 2011 (Jim Young/Reuters) PPP's latest poll of Texas showed Mitt Romney beating President Barack Obama 50-43 in the presidential head-to-head. That the Republican was winning isn't surprising, but the single-digit margin was. John McCain won the state 55-44 in 2008, and it has obviously served a...
DailyKos (Texas) - May 7
